AEO SaaS
Case Study
Lead Product Designer
Oct - Dec 2025
AEO SaaS
The First Platform to Measure Visibility Inside AI Answer Engines.
Project Overview
Oct – Dec 2025 • Product Designer (Lead)
Strategic Goal
Build the first SaaS platform dedicated to Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) — enabling marketers and agencies to measure, improve, and benchmark their brand’s visibility inside AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity.
Create a new market category, not just compete in an existing one.
The Problem
"I literally copy-paste my client’s URL into ChatGPT every Monday… just to see if we’re mentioned."
Core Pain Points
- 01.Zero visibility inside AI answers — no tools exist to measure this.
- 02.Manual workflows waste 2+ hours/week per client.
- 03.Competitor blindness: Agencies can’t tell if rivals are being cited.
Market Gap
While tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush dominate SERP analytics, none offer AI-answer visibility tracking.
This is a white space — and an opportunity to define the category.
My Process
A full product design lifecycle from discovery to delivery.
Discover
Stakeholder Kick-off, Competitive Scan, 12 User Interviews
Define
Persona (Maya), JTBD, As-Is Journey Map, Service Blueprint
Ideate
HMW Questions, Crazy-8s, Storyboards, Impact vs Effort
Prototype
Low-Fi, Mid-Fi (Content), High-Fi (Micro-copy)
Test
Usability Testing, Iteration Cycles
Deliver
Design System, Motion Guidelines, Dev Hand-off
Measure
Event Tracking (GA4 + GTM), Success Metrics
Key Insights
From 12 user interviews, three powerful insights emerged.
"I don’t need a report — I need a number I can screenshot."
Insight
Users want a single, shareable metric (AEO Score) to prove value.
"If I can’t measure it, I can’t sell it."
Insight
The lack of AI visibility data blocks upsells and client trust.
"AEO is the next frontier — but there’s no standard."
Insight
We have a rare chance to define the category, not just enter it.
The Solution
Designed around Maya's Job-To-Be-Done: Clarity over complexity.
AEO Visibility Score
78/100
AEO Score (0–100)
A clear, proprietary metric for AI visibility. No more ambiguity.
Competitor Gap Analysis
See exactly when rivals get cited and you don't.
Branded PDF Export
Generate client-ready reports in one click.
Real-Time Alerts
Get notified the moment a competitor appears in ChatGPT.
Why this design?
- One big number, not 10 confusing graphs.
- Actionable output: Every screen ends with a "next step".
- Client-ready: Built to be screenshotted.
Dashboard Sub-Views – The Full Experience
To give Maya a complete and intuitive workflow, the dashboard includes 4 core sub-views—each designed to eliminate friction, reduce manual work, and give her full visibility across all SEO operations.
Sites View
Your sites at a glance
Before, Maya had to track 17 sites manually across tabs and spreadsheets. Now she manages everything in one unified pane, with instant overview and structured hierarchy.
Reports View
Your reports at a glance
Maya used to export 5 different SEO reports weekly. With the new system, she generates one branded PDF in seconds—ready to share with stakeholders.
Alerts View
Your alerts at a glance
Maya no longer needs to manually check competitors. Real-time citations and alerts ensure she reacts instantly to market shifts.
All quiet – we'll notify you when competitors get cited.
Help View
Help at a glance
Instead of searching for answers across docs and chat threads, Maya gets unified, contextual help directly inside her workflow.
Impact & Results
Quantifiable results from the MVP launch.
83%
of users said "This solves my core problem."
70%
Exported a report within 14 days (North Star Metric).
MVP Pricing Strategy
20% below competitors like Writesonic GEO.
Drastic reduction in workflow time per client.
Reflection
"In emerging markets, design isn’t just about interfaces — it’s about defining the rules of the game."
What I Learned
- ✓ The real product isn’t the dashboard — it’s proof of value for the client.
- ✓ Simplicity wins: One metric > ten ambiguous charts.
- ✓ Category creation > feature competition.
Next Steps
- 1 Launch MVP to 300 active users.
- 2 Validate “AEO Score” as an industry benchmark.
- 3 Integrate with Google Search Console.
Accessibility & Design System
This isn’t just another SEO tool.
It’s the first lens into the black box of AI answers.
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